Obituary of Muriel Grace Richards
Our hearts are broken by the passing of our mom, Muriel Grace Richards (nee Robson) on December 13, 2024, just 6 days shy of her 99th birthday. Her daughters, Wendy and Christine were by her side.
Muriel was born in Cape Town, South Africa, on December 19, 1925. She was raised and went to school in Kimberley, SA. It was here that she met and married her beloved Alfred (d. Oct 2023) and together they celebrated 76 years of marriage. In their first years as a family, Muriel and Alfred went to live on a desert diamond mine site in Orange Mouth in Southwest Africa (now Namibia). It was here that Muriel was crowned Diamond Queen. Understandably, she was always proud of this achievement.
Muriel and Alfred (P.Eng) and their three year old son, Verant (d. 1988) emigrated to Canada in 1953. On a stop-over in London, England, while shopping for clothes, Muriel was spotted by a manager who wanted her to be a model for his wares. The Diamond Queen title was clearly well deserved! Two daughters, Wendy and Christine, were born in Canada. Over the course of their marriage, Muriel and Alfred lived in a number of Ontario and Quebec towns and cities, moving the family for Alfred’s work. In all the locations, Muriel always set up a comfortable home, making sure her family felt secure and cozy. With her easy manner, desire to help and willingness to get involved with neighbours and the community, Muriel easily made friends in every location. Some of the friendships formed in the many locations lasted her lifetime. Brockville was her last place of residence where she was blessed with great neighbours and helpful community workers.
Muriel held a number of jobs once her children were in school. Her most enjoyable ones were in municipal libraries and with the Government of Ontario library services. A drugstore post office also benefited from her friendly and efficient ways.
Muriel enjoyed playing and watching golf, taking part in community theatre, reading, gardening, playing Scrabble (most often winning) and camping road trips in our house trailer. She was a very good cook and even better baker. Her bread rolls and raisin buns were requested (essentially demanded) at every family function! She had a love/hate relationship with our Siamese cats which came along on all the trips. She lovingly put up with the cats because Alfred and the children wanted them. Muriel’s camping skills also extended to hiking along the Bruce Trail with Wendy and Christine and tent camping with Alfred, even later in life.
The ocean was always an enduring draw for Muriel since her childhood holidays were spent at the seaside. She enjoyed every opportunity to visit the ocean and sandy shores in Canada and the Eastern USA.
Mom was loved and will be missed by Wendy (m. Paul), Christine (m. Mauro), five Grandchildren (Kevin, Steven, Alison, Carolyn and Emily), 12 Great-grandchildren (Bennett, Brooke, Easton, Nova, Knox, Karson, Kai, Waverley, Maggie, Koen, Aksel and Charlie), her Sister-in-Law Ellie Robson and her “other daughter”, Penny Poapst.
Muriel is reunited with Alfred, Verant and her brother Denis. They are drinking tea and eating toast that’s buttered right to the very edges.
Family and friends thank Bayshore, the Victorian Order of Nurses and all the staff and PSW’s at Sherwood Park Manor who cared for her in her final years.
We also thank all of the family and friends who have expressed their condolences; these are sincerely appreciated. For those who would like to contribute to a charity in her name, we ask that you consider:
The Victorian Order of Nurses who provided in-home care for both Alfred and Muriel over several years, allowing them to stay in their home environment much longer than they would have been able to without these professional, efficient and kind people. The website for donating is www.von.ca. There is a tab for donation and an opportunity to pay tribute to an individual there.
Alternately, and equally deserving of donations, is Sherwood Park Manor where Muriel lived out her last year and a half. Sherwoodparkmanor.com.
